Princeton Narrowly Overcomes Yale, 4-3

Daniel Hoffman

Apr 08, 2012

Bulldogs Extend Doubles Point Winning Streak to Seven Matches

PRINCETON, N.J. – On the heels of an exciting win over Penn on Saturday to start the Ivy League season, the Yale men's tennis team was unable to upend Princeton Sunday afternoon at the Lenz Tennis Center. Though the Bulldogs secured the doubles point, the Tigers' strong singles performance gave them the overall 4-3 victory.

Yale (12-7, 1-1 Ivy League) falls to 7-6 in away matches this season and also suffers its first loss to an unranked opponent, though Princeton was ranked as high as No. 63 earlier this season.

The afternoon began according to plan for Yale. By winning two of the doubles matches, Yale extended its streak of winning the doubles point to seven matches in a row. Yale's No. 2 team of sophomore Patrick Chase and junior John Huang got the Bulldogs off to a fast start with an 8-5 win. The Elis' No. 3 team of senior captain Erik Blumenkranz and classmate Joel Samaha then clinched the doubles point by winning 9-8, saving one match point in the process. The No. 1 doubles match, which finished last, was a thrilling battle of two teams ranked only 27 spots apart in the national rankings. Eventually, Princeton's No. 40 team of Matt Siow and Matt Spindler edged Yale's No. 67 team of juniors Daniel Hoffman and Marc Powers by a score of 8-6.

Princeton boasts a deep singles line-up that features No. 65 Matija Pecotic. In a singles duel of two nationally ranked players, Pecotic beat No. 118 Powers in straight sets to put Princeton on the board. After sophomore Kyle Dawson was defeated by his opponent at No. 6 singles, Huang got the Bulldogs back on even terms with a 6-1, 7-5 win at No. 2 singles. Huang has won the last 14 sets he has played. With the score tied at 2-2, the last three singles matches to finish all went the distance. At No. 4, Blumenkranz lost a second-set tiebreaker and from there was unable to get back into the match, falling 2-6, 7-6, 6-0 to Princeton's Dan Richardson. Fighting to keep the Bulldogs alive, No. 5 freshman Zachary Krumholz won a second-set tiebreaker but ultimately lost to Siow, 6-3, 6-7, 6-2. Hoffman, however, managed to salvage a three-set victory, outlasting Augie Bloom by a score of 3-6, 7-6, 7-5.

Princeton (12-8) remains undefeated in Ivy League play (3-0) and is now on a five-match winning streak. The Tigers travel to play Dartmouth and Harvard next Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

Despite the loss, the Bulldogs are determined to take away positives from such a close match.

"It was a great match, hard-fought," said Alex Dorato, Cary Leeds Head Coach of Men's Tennis. "Doubles was very exciting."

Yale returns home next weekend to play Columbia and Cornell on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. Both matches are at 2 p.m. The Bulldogs look to get back to their winning ways as they continue their quest for an Ivy League title.